The idea of one NFC device that I could use to pay for my tram ride in Melbourne, a winery in SA, and a retailer in NSW, sounds perfect. However, the way things are going now in Australia, we may well have a bunch of disparate NFC cards and schemes across the land, which that will still require me to carry a dozen or so cards in my already burdened wallet.
It does not have to be this way. Imagine, one NFC device, my iPhone for example (yes, I know it’s not NFC-enabled yet!), connected to my back-end payment instruments (Bank Account, Credit Card, etc) with all my various loyalty schemes (airline, hotel, etc). I could ditch at least two dozen or so cards in my wallet and simplify my life (a bit).
The idea is good idea for the consumer, but then so is high-speed broadband. I already have a fiber cable to my house in Singapore, but my house in Australia will have to wait until at least 2021. Hence my concern for NFC in Australia, even with the formation of a council, is that the country will yet again lag behind the rest of the world, digitally speaking.
Tarik Husain is business development director for mCommerce at Sybase 365. For more information go to http://blogs.sybase.com/mobilecommerce/